A crooked bookkeeper who plundered £90,000 from a construction firm to fund a gambling habit has been jailed for 28 months.
Andrea Cochrane, 52, worked as a trusted company secretary for more than 30 years but stole thousands to fund a £700 a day addiction.
She was fired after horrified bosses at A Steel & Son Contractors in East Kilbride, discovered a string of bogus payments.
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After an initial payment of £2,500 had been queried, a review discovered £28,000 had been made to an accountancy firm when it should only have been £10,000.
Investigations revealed Cochrane had labelled a series of high value transactions as 'Turner Accountancy' but had used the details of her own account to pocket the cash.
Cochrane, of Bellshill, appeared at Hamilton Sheriff Court and admitted embezzling £90,000 between January and July 2019.
She was jailed by Sheriff John Speir who said he was left with no alternative but to put her behind bars.
The court had earlier heard Cochrane was trying to sell her house in order to repay her former employers but she was unable to find the funds.
A victim impact statement from the firm said Cochrane had left other employees fearing for their jobs by telling them the company was in a dire financial situation.
It added that the company was struggling due to her greed and the impact of the pandemic on business.
Speaking outside court, Amy Steel, who uncovered the fraud at the firm, said: "Justice has been served.
"We are relieved it is all over and we were able to come here and see her being sentenced for what she did.
"We know we're not getting money back from her and have written it off.
"But at last she is going to pay for what she has done to us."
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Campbell Steel, whose father established the firm, added: "She was like one of the family and this is how she repaid us.
"We were at weddings and birthdays with her and would invite her to events we were having and she threw it back in our faces after 34 years.
"We had to keep quiet but are speaking out now because of the serious harm she caused to our business to the point that there nearly wasn't a business left at all because she was helping herself."
Sheriff Speir said: "I fully account for the remorse you have shown for your actions which you are aware involved a gross breach of trust.
"It has had a significant impact on your former employers and funds have simply not been repaid and it doesn't look like that will ever happen.
"This involved a great deal of planning and premeditation and the harm your actions caused is still being felt and the business carries on by the skin of its teeth.
"I have no alternative but to impose a custodial sentence on you."
Cochrane is facing proceeds of crime action as well as bankruptcy after her former employers launched civil action against her.
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